A Doctor and her idiot
by KageNoYoko
Summary: A sickly ginger with more energy then sense. A concerned doctor-in-training who tries not to show how much she cares. Their adventures in school. slice of life AU where Honoka and Maki are the same age.
1. A Doctor and her Idiot

A/N: I'd suggest reading the A/N at the end of the chapter for more information about my recent absence. It goes into more detail then I'd like to put at the start of the chapter.

This is an AU where Honoka is the same age as Maki, and there are no plans for the girls to become school idols, though I have plans for all members of the cast of LL!SIP to appear. None of the other girl's ages are being changed at this time.

Disclaimer: I own nothing from Love Live! School Idol Project. But please consider supporting the official release through sites like Crunchyroll, or by purchasing the DVD/Blu-ray at your local stores or online.

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Honoka Kousaka had known that she wasn't a normal child from a young age, thanks to several hints that clued the otherwise oblivious youngster in. She found that she got tired very quickly and easily when active, went to visit the doctor quite often (at least compared to a few of the other children that she got to speak to in her neighbourhood), and often felt as though there was a large rock on her chest making breathing difficult after exerting herself.

None of these things were able to stop the ginger's bright mood from shining through though, even though her parents held her back from attending public schools for her own safety and fear of Honoka making herself sick.

A great silver lining at least in Honoka's eyes was the fact that through visiting the very nice doctor often enough, the ginger manages to make a great friend who cared enough about her health to watch out for Honoka where she would otherwise ignore the signs that she might be overdoing it.

Maki Nishikino had been very mature and well-educated for her age even as a child, and noticed that Honoka came to visit her families hospital often in short order, enough that she asked her mum about it.

This led to a conversation where the mischievous doctor Nishikino told her daughter in the most mature voice she could manage without breaking into a laughing fit, that she was putting Maki in charge of watching over Honoka's health and making sure that the girl didn't overdo it. Logically the young girl took the orders seriously, and began following Honoka around like a guardian spirit, helping to solve the problem of both girls' loneliness.

Maki became a common sight around the Kousaka residence as a quiet presence looking out for Honoka as she cheerfully held her new friend's hand and dragged her along in the ginger's adventures in a mixture of shy reservation and stubborn impassiveness when Honoka suggested doing something that Maki didn't believe would agree with her friend's body.

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As the pair grew older Honoka became more interested in the idea of attending a public school, since she heard stories from neighbours about how amazing it would be and all of the new friends that she might be able to make with her sparkling personality and radiant smile.

Though her parents were hesitant about allowing their eldest daughter to attend school out of fear that she might overdo it, Honoka's begging persisted, leading the two families to get together and try to devise a plan to look out for Honoka's health while still letting her have the educational experience that she needed for her mental development.

A plan was eventually worked out, and after a meeting with the headmistress of Mrs. Kousaka's former high school, who was also a childhood friend of both she and doctor Nishikino, it was decided that both Honoka and Maki would be allowed to attend Otonokizaka high.

Honoka's excitement could almost not be contained when she was told the night after the meeting with the headmistress as she held onto Maki's hand dependently, more due to Maki's fear of the ginger bouncing away and overdoing it, but both girls enjoyed the warmth of their fingers intertwined as they listened to Mr. and Mrs. Kousaka explain to the girls their simple plan to let Honoka attend high school.

Once safely back upstairs in her room, Honoka's energy all but exploded as she did a small spin and smiled from ear to ear at her best friend in excitement "can you believe it Maki, I'm going to get to attend high school!"

Maki had taken a place on the edge of Honoka's bed while the ginger closed the door to her room, and the auburn had a small smile as she watched her friend's almost boundless energy and excitement "it's not that difficult to believe Honoka" she tried to reason with the ginger despite her own smile.

"But Maki!" Honoka whined as she suddenly appeared in Maki's face with a pout, kneeling in front of the auburn "it's high school, I never thought that mama and papa would let me attend because of my condition."

Rolling her eyes at Honoka's logic, Maki was more reserved as always about the matter "it's only because they managed to convince mama to sign on as the school's nurse. Having her there means that we'll have someone on hand in case you overdo it, or your condition acts up."

Honoka got back to her feet and stepped away from Maki once more as the auburn's comment bounced through her head for a few minutes. It didn't take long before Honoka's own logic took over, and she looked over her shoulder at her best friend with a radiant smile "but I already have a super-talented doctor-in-training looking out for me, hee hee" she teased, earning the reaction she had wanted.

Maki's face lit up in a brilliant shade of red that almost matched her hair when she realized what Honoka had said, the ginger's teasing and honest confidence in Maki's abilities always making her best friend blush, since Maki knew that Honoka believed everything she had said.

The mood over the room shifted as Maki jumped from the bed and stormed up to Honoka, who noticed the change and tried to back away nervously. She wasn't fast enough to outpace Maki though, as the taller auburn got right into her face.

Maki lifted up both hands and used them to squish together Honoka's cheeks with an accompanying glare on her face, her violet eyes staring holes into the ginger "don't tease me like that you idiot" she scolded her best friend only partially as a joke because she had grown used to Honoka's games as they got older and spent more time together.

Whining about her abused cheeks, Honoka didn't try to pull Maki's hands away as one might expect, instead fighting back giggles at how silly Maki could sometimes be despite her usually very mature and adult personality.

Neither girl stopped their games until Honoka's younger sister began banging on the door complaining loudly about how noisy the two were being while she tried to sleep after a day out with her friends, and the upcoming new year of school.

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A/N: Oh my god I can't believe how long it's been. I'm really sorry everyone, I didn't intend to take a roughly five month break from writing that dragged into the new year, but somehow it just sort of happened.

 **Between November and December being some of the busiest times of the year for my family (and not just because of Christmas), and my odd inability to just sit down and put pen to paper (rhetorically-speaking) for the duration, at best all I've been able to do was write out a few rough drafts for different ideas in my notebooks (including this one) amidst a goal of clearing out my video game backlog (which just continues to grow as I find more games for cheap on Steam, PSN, Xbox Live, and at my local second hand game shop.**

 **All I can really do is offer apologies to everyone who has been waiting for updates to my various stories, and admit a hope that I can get back into a comfortable updating schedule (using my definition of the term "comfortable," for those of you already aware of my habits).**

 **Anyways, back on topic to the story, this was probably one of my most fleshed-out rough drafts that I've been working on, and I was very eager to begin working on it since I love the idea of the relationship between Maki and Honoka with their contrasting personalities.**

 **Since I'm not that familiar with different types of mental and physical deficiencies (despite having an older sister whose a nurse and had to study a lot of that stuff) I haven't really tried to specify what Honoka's diagnosis is, so just keep in mind the symptoms, and if anyone can help out I'd really appreciate it.**

 **This chapter was a bit on the short side more because it was set-up for the adventure ahead, though I probably won't top out on more then maybe 10 pages for each chapter since this is going to be more of a slice of life plot where I play more with the girls personality traits interacting then any kind of real overarching narrative.**

 **Until next time everyone, love you all!**


	2. (Flashback) New friend!

A/N: read the full note at the end of the chapter for more info, since I don't want to bloat the story before it even starts.

 **Hope everyone enjoys, sorry this took so long.**

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Maki remained quiet as she obediently followed her mother down the sterile white halls of the hospital that she would someday work in, keeping her much smaller hand in her mothers.

She had been told that her parents had a very important job for her that would help them out immensely, and the little girl was very eager to do anything to assist at the hospital. She might not have been very old, but knew that helping people was a meaningful profession, which was why her Mama and Papa owned and funded their families hospital.

Unfortunately visiting the hospital also came with it's share of annoyances to the young girl, and Maki had caught no end of doctors and nurses giving her odd looks and compliments just because she was the Nishikino heiress, when she just wanted to be recognized for being a good doctor when she was older.

Hearing her Mama clear her throat brought Maki's attention back to the situation and she looked up at the very pretty woman with the same violet eyes as her daughter attentively, her eagerness to be a good girl making the older doctor smile.

"Now darling, what your Papa and I are planning to have you do might seem a little daunting at first, but we're sure that it's something only you can do, and will support our work" Maki's Mama explained slowly, but brought a smile to the young girl's face.

The auburn-haired girl's eyes caught sight of her Papa exiting a patient's room as the duo approached, and a small smile appeared on his face as he noticed the two most important women in his life as he peeled off the rubber gloves that he had been wearing. Maki did her best to stand straighter in her Father's presence and not fidget with her skirt or play with her hair as a nervous habit.

"I just managed to get her to calm down after finishing her physical, since she's very excited at the idea of making a new friend" he explained to his wife and daughter with a bemused sigh, making Maki's eyebrows lift in curiosity.

Maki's Mother released her hand and turned to face her daughter with a bright smile, kneeling down so that she could better look into her daughter's eyes and speak to her. She didn't have to worry, as the moment her hand was released Maki was fully paying attention to her Mama's movements.

"There's a girl whose been coming to our hospital for a while that is very sick, but there's nothing we can really do to make her better. Instead we have to try and keep her from hurting herself further, yet she's incredibly excitable and cheerful, if not a bit forgetful" Maki hung off of every one of her Mama's words, becoming more interested by the second as she heard about this mysterious patient.

"We would like you to try and become her friend and help keep an eye on her so that she doesn't overdo it. Both your father and I know that it's a job only you can do Honey, and we have absolute faith in our little doctor prodigy" her Mama explained, bringing a warm heat to Maki's cheeks, as well as a small sense of pride that her parents trusted her so much.

"It might be a little unnerving getting to know her at first dear" her father chimed in, not looking at his daughter as he scanned a sheet of paper on the clipboard which had been placed in the patients medical form slot.

"Be patient with her and try not to let her just drag you around honey, she's quite the handful" her mother continued for her husband, offering a small smile to her only daughter, which Maki returned eagerly.

Her Father idly reached out to open the door for his daughter, and her Mama gently guided her towards the door. Though a small amount of trepidation was bubbling in her stomach as the moment of truth approached, Maki straightened her back and tried to look brave in front of her parents as she put one foot in front of the other and stepped through the doorway.

Once the door was closed again Mr. Nishikino released a tired sigh as he put the clipboard back into the slot and turned to face his wife with a small frown, only making the woman's smile widen in return.

"How do I let you talk me into these kinds of things?" The doctor asked rhetorically as his wife approached with a mischievous smile on her face. She didn't immediately reply to her husband as her eyes strayed back to the door momentarily where her daughter was busy .

"It's the perfect way to solve both of our problems and help Maki make some new friends Dear" Mrs. Nishikino informed her husband knowingly with that same smug smile on her face that the man had come to dread.

"I still think that you three are meddling too much in your daughters lives" the doctor commented, referring to his wife's childhood friends who were equally playful and somewhat annoying despite having grown up and had their own children.

His wife simply giggled at his commentary while moving her hands behind her back and smiling up at him "Maki can help keep her out of trouble in ways that we adults certainly can't" she pointed out to her husband.

"Not to mention that Kaguya, Mito and I were already friends at their age" Mrs. Nishikino added on brightly, only bringing a groan out of her husbands mouth at the reminder of the two other women his wife was friends with.

Groaning aloud and bringing up a hand to cover his face Mr. Nishikino knew better then to try and continue debating this topic with his wife as he turned away from the woman "I'll leave it in your capable hands then" he muttered in dismissal of the antics of the terrible trio, and began to walk away back towards the nurses station so that he could deal with a less stressful patient.

His wife followed with a melodic laugh and a comment about him being a "coward" as she made plans to collect her extra set of scrubs stashed in the locker room and put in a few hours at the hospital. A small plan in the back of her mind was to check up on the girls in a bit and see what kind of trouble they had gotten into.

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Maki hadn't been sure of what to expect when she entered the room and heard one of her parents shut the door behind her, but first noticed just how pristine the white room looked without many personal effects inside. A small vase with several multicoloured flowers in white, pink and orange sat on the table beside the patient's bed, along with a manga that Maki didn't recognize.

Sitting on the bed quietly to Maki's surprise given what her parents had told her was a tiny girl with bright orange hair and a luminous smile as her bright blue eyes turned to investigate her new visitor, which only grew brighter as their eyes met and her smile widened.

The auburn hadn't expected the girl to jump from the bed and invade Maki's personal space so quickly with how her parents made the girl's situation sound, and she had to resist flinching back from the girl. Only a brief thought in the back of her mind that she wasn't a scaredy-cat made her stand her ground, along with a reminder that this girl couldn't really be dangerous.

"Are you Doctor Nishikino's daughter?" She asked in a high and friendly voice, though then she continued before Maki could reply "You're just as pretty as she is!"

She was sure that her face was bright red at the compliment even though there was a small amount of resentment because she was being referred to as her parents daughter, and somehow managed to choke out a greeting despite the nerves bubbling in her chest "I'm Maki."

Reaching out to take the taller auburn's hands in her own tiny and pale ones the girl was still smiling as she offered her own introduction "I'm Honoka!" She chirped happily to the girl, almost looking ready to begin jumping with excitement.

Maki wasn't given much time to look at Honoka, but noted that instead of the hospital gown she was wearing a long white and orange dress along with a pair of velcro shoes which seemed amusing to Maki. Before she could notice anything else about the girl or the room that she had been in, Maki was brought back to attention by Honoka asking a question completely out of the blue "want to be friends?"

The girl's lack of a speed other then go was already tiring Maki out a bit, but her mind locked on the question of having a friend since she didn't have many of her own other then rich kids she'd met at several events her parents brought her to that she didn't like very much. She didn't dislike the idea of having a true friend like Honoka and it would help with the job her parents had given her, so she managed a shy smile and replied "yes please" quietly.

She had almost thought that Honoka hadn't heard her reply but was once again startled when Honoka did begin to jump in place and laugh without releasing Maki's hands, chanting about new friends eagerly.

A very brief lull passed between the two girls as Honoka recovered from her little explosion of joy, allowing Maki to note that the girls breathing seemed to be slightly laboured to her curiosity, but that question was shelved when Honoka started to speak again "hey, do you want to go and search the hospital for monsters together?"

While the concept of there being monsters in her parents hospital sounded silly to Maki she was more eager to spend time together with her new friend, and the thought of the pair getting into trouble with her parents was just an afterthought in the back of her mind so she offered a small nod to her new friend along with a shy smile.

Maki almost released a cry when Honoka rushed past her towards the door without releasing one of her hands and quickly pulled it open, dragging Maki along to her distress. Despite this she couldn't bring herself to complain to Honoka about letting go since the hand holding the smaller girls was tingling warmly and she couldn't seem to stop smiling as Honoka talked a mile a minute about her baby sister, though most of the information went in one ear and out the other.

Both girls were lightly scolded by Maki's Mama when they were caught in an older patients room looking under his bed for monsters to his amusement, but neither six-year old took the scolding to heart since Mrs. Nishikino was smiling as she told the two to try not to bother the Hospital's patients.

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A/N: I'm sorry that this chapter took so long and was only about four pages, since I actually had the core concept finished the night after I published the first chapter, but just couldn't get around to writing the hard copy until now. A combination of video games and an inability to sit down and write can be a glorious procrastination method.

Thank you all for being patient and following along so far and all of the reviews that you've written. It's very heart-warming to hear from you guys about the story.

Just adding this in at the end, I have a list of my gaming info like usernames and such on my profile and I'm more then happy to join up to play multiplayer games when or if I'm online. I've mostly been playing on Steam recently and have been getting the hang of Civ 5, so send along a message if you'd like. I'm a bit lacking in the friends department and would love to play with you guys.

Until next time love you everyone!


	3. Recital and confidence issues

See bottom of chapter for notes, and I hope that everyone enjoys chapter 3.

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Maki had learned rather early in her friendship with Honoka that the girl was excellent for boosting up her confidence and being honest with how she felt about things, so when the ginger learned that Maki enjoyed playing the piano she practically begged her friend to let her listen to her play.

Though at first Maki was wary about letting someone other then her parents listen to her practise her music she eventually relented under Honoka's insistence and optimism and one day took Honoka into one of the many sitting rooms in the Nishikino mansion where a well-tuned piano had been set up for the heiress to practise on.

What Maki hadn't expected was just how entranced Honoka became once she began playing, and the gingers eyes never left Maki as she worked through the notes of a song she had long since learned how to play from heart and memory.

After she played the final note the spell appeared to be broken, and Honoka exploded into motion once more with eager applause for her friend and a bright smile upon her face that made Maki's cheeks burn with a bit of embarrassment.

As the pair became older and Maki got more confident in her abilities her parents began to schedule recitals for their daughter so that she could play in front of a larger audience, to the girls minor annoyance and embarrassment. Honoka was very vocal about wanting to be in the front row watching her best friend play and Maki couldn't deny the girl since Honoka was just so endearing.

If Honoka had to compare Maki to anything while she sat up on stage under the lights in a very pretty dark red dress that matched the color of her hair playing music completely oblivious to everyone watching her, it would likely be an angel. The lights just seemed to illuminate her friend's beauty and her fingers moved with such a deft confidence that Honoka thought she was watching a completely different person.

The opinion of everyone else in the audience was completely ignored by Honoka as her eyes never strayed from Maki while she did one of the things that she loved, and the ginger followed along with the progression of the song to the best of her limited knowledge of musical theory while enjoying the sound.

Honoka became a blur of motion once more after Maki finished her song and offered a bow to the audience, already up and moving towards the backstage before Maki was even completely out of sight, only causing a few people to whisper in confusion of what might be happening.

Thanks to her eagerness Honoka was able to meet Maki at the door to her impromptu dressing room with a bright smile and compliments poised at the tip of her tongue, but instead found herself being scolded by her best friend for doing something silly again.

Maki scowled at Honoka as the ginger stood there out of breath after likely running all the way to her dressing room door out of breath and red-faced "Honoka, you shouldn't have run all the way back here! You knew exactly where I was going to be after my performance finished!"

Though she certainly didn't enjoy being scolded by Maki Honoka knew somewhere in the back of her mind that the auburn was simply looking out for her health, and tried to argue her case with her typical optimism "but Maki, I wanted to be the first person to tell you how amazing you were!" the teen whined to her best friend in hopes that it might blunt some of Maki's anger.

It was difficult for Maki to ignore the way her cheeks burned at the honest compliment from Honoka, so instead of trying to deal with the feelings and the way that Honoka was obviously trying to distract her Maki gently stepped past Honoka and entered her dressing room followed by Honoka's charming laughter.

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Even though it was a constant concern for the doctor-in-training Maki did still somehow manage to forget about Honoka's condition due to the way that Honoka acted around her with boundless energy and optimism.

While initially she had been a bit wary of "going out" with Honoka into the city when they were younger Maki was won over by Honoka's insistence that she would take it easy and tell Maki if she wasn't feeling well. It had become a common occurrence for the pair to set aside one day of the week to go into town and visit a few shops, though Maki always kept at least one eye on Honoka's breathing to make sure that she was actually being careful.

Honoka acted like an eager ball of energy when the two were outside but always kept at least one hand holding Maki's as the two moved through the crowded streets together, babbling in excitement about anything that crossed her mind.

Maki was one to just add her opinion every so often to what Honoka was talking about while she soaked up everything that the ginger said, and occasionally being the voice of reason to some of Honoka's more ridiculous thoughts.

The red-haired doctor was distracted from her own thoughts when she overheard Honoka release a cry of surprise. Turning to look at the other girl in hopes of answers, Maki noted that Honoka looked star struck and staring into the crowd.

"Look at how beautiful those girls look Maki!" Honoka told her friend with accompanying tugs on Maki's arm with one hand while she pointed with the other, peaking Maki's own curiosity.

Doing as she had been asked Maki turned to look where Honoka was pointing, and quietly admitted that Honoka was right that the girls did have a certain mature beauty to them.

One was a very exotic-looking blonde-haired girl who was rather tall (only making Maki a little bit jealous) with long, luxurious hair and bright blue eyes, while the other had fascinating amethyst-coloured hair and a very blessed frame that Maki was definitely envious of, though she questioned the twin ponytails she had her hair up in.

Both girls had an air of maturity around them that Maki only hoped she could gain when she got older, and she stamped down the feelings of envy she felt about Honoka staring at the two with stars in her eyes.

"Do you want to go over and talk to those two Honoka?" Maki asked as a courtesy to her friend, not really wanting anything to do with the pair but knowing that Honoka could be interested in saying hello. The girl was known to be friendly to everyone, and more then once Maki had been forced to step in and stop Honoka from offering help to more elderly people having trouble because she forgot about her own physical weakness.

She was surprised that Honoka actually showed hesitation for a change and began drawing circles with one of her shoes as she moved her hands behind her back and a faint amount of red appeared on the gingers cheeks "it seems a bit wrong to bother them on the weekend Maki, and I bet that they're busy with some important adult business" Honoka reasoned with her friend.

This new more meek side of her friend was unexpected to Maki, but she wasn't given a chance to try and encourage Honoka because the girls they had been looking at had disappeared into the crowd and Maki could no longer see them.

Feeling a bit of concern that there could be something wrong with Honoka Maki grabbed onto her friends hand and pulled her towards a nearby park, without the ginger fighting her friend at all and simply trailing after her doctor friend quietly.

Once the pair found an empty bench Maki all but pushed Honoka to sit and took the seat beside her friend without releasing her hand, a frown marring her features as she glared down her best friend in disapproval "What's the matter Honoka, you became very meek when I suggested we go and say hello to those older girls?"

At first all Maki could get out of Honoka were mumbled responses that just incited Maki's anger further, but finally Honoka found her voice and admitted the truth to her friend "I don't want them to think that I'm weird because my body doesn't work right."

Blinking at the crazy reasoning coming out of the overly-friendly girl's mouth, Maki was almost tempted to start yelling at Honoka, but instead jumped to her feet and began pacing around in front of the park bench and mumbling to herself "how could anyone hate someone whose so hopelessly friendly?" She asked rhetorically.

This was a new side of Honoka that Maki hadn't encountered before and was unsure of how to deal with, and her mind worked furiously to try and think of why this lack of confidence was beginning to appear now that the girls were getting older. Nothing that had happened recently came to mind that Maki could tie to Honoka's change in mood.

Despite priding herself on her intellect it did take longer then Maki would have liked for the answer to appear in front of her, and she turned to face Honoka with a scowl "is it because we're going to be attending high school soon?" The way that Honoka shrunk down in her seat confirmed Maki's suspicions, and only made the auburn more curious about what could be going through her friend's mind.

Maki chose to shelve the matter for now since she wasn't sure how to help Honoka with her problems, and instead tried to comfort her friend by biting back her own embarrassment to kneel down in front of Honoka and take both of her hands into her own "listen Honoka, no matter what anyone else thinks about you, I'll always be by your side."

She quietly admit that the way Honoka's watery blue eyes looked up at her made Maki's heart skip a beat, and she couldn't believe that she had been able to say something so dorky to her friend. Only the fact that Honoka obviously appreciated the reassurance kept Maki from becoming a blushing red mess.

This might be a new side to her friend that Maki still wasn't sure how to deal with yet, but it certainly wasn't going to make Maki like Honoka any less after all of the times the ginger had sat through Maki scolding her for overdoing it and looking out for her.

She had made a promise to her parents that she would keep an eye on this idiot put into her care, and Maki would never think of disappointing her parents. And maybe it was also because she really liked having Honoka around, a smaller part of her mind whispered back that she pointedly ignored.

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 **This chapter certainly took a turn in a direction that I didn't originally intend it to go in, and I may have cut out a part that I originally intended to add after Maki's recital that I just didn't think worked all that well, but I got down most of what I wanted to put in that part about Honoka being Maki's most vocal fan.**

 **The entire second-half was actually based on a completely different idea that I had and just decided to convert for the sake of filling out this short, since I didn't want to just post the first half and end up with a two-page chapter.**

 **Early look at Eli and Nozomi, who will be popping up later and becoming important figures to Honoka and Maki, and a look at Honoka's confidence issues, which I may have channelled some of my own confidence issues into. Just because people act happy all the time doesn't mean that they don't have depressing thoughts and Honoka's lucky to have someone like Maki willing to stand by her.**

 **Here's hoping that you guys have your own Maki or Honoka to be your emotional support, and I'm really hoping that this chapter wasn't disappointing to you guys. The next chapter is going to likely be another flashback chapter of little Honk and Mack's adventures together, with a little more input from Mama Nishikino.**

 **Until then I love you all, see you guys next time!**


	4. (flashback) Nishikino Mansion

"Let's see…blood pressure is normal, heart rate is a little faster then normal but otherwise fine, temperature is okay, your lungs sound okay" Doctor Nishikino listed off as she looked at the form she had been writing down her findings on while she gave Honoka a check-up one sunny afternoon.

The ginger in question was squirming slightly on the cot that she had been told to sit on, obviously eager to get back to having fun instead of sitting in a stuffy room with the doctor, but respecting the woman who took care of her health too much to cause trouble for the woman.

Chuckling to herself as she watched the eight-year old try to hold in her boundless energy, Doctor Nishikino did her best to finish up as quickly as she could, since she knew that Honoka could only stay still for so long before it became impossible to get any work done.

Setting her pen down next to Honoka's medical form and turning to face the young girl, Doctor Nishikino smiled at her daughter's best friend while she took off the rubber gloves that she had been using during the examination "I believe that's everything that I need to check for today Honoka-dear" bringing a bright smile to the ginger's face at the prospect of the light at the end of the tunnel.

"Does that mean I can go and play with Maki now?" Honoka asked eagerly, practically bouncing in place out of excitement that she could escape from the stuffy room she had been sitting in for at least the last hour while Mrs. Nishikino did all of the tests that had become normal for the sickly girl.

Laughing at Honoka's choice of words when referring to spending time together with her daughter, Mrs. Nishikino would have let Honoka go immediately if not for her duty as a doctor reminding her that she needed to be responsible and tell Honoka to take care until the next time they had a check-up like this.

"Now Honoka I need you to remember to drink lots of water and take it easy if you start to feel dizzy or hard of breath" the doctor informed her patient dutifully as she looked Honoka right in the eyes, hoping that might make a difference in the ginger actually listening to her. Honoka returned a very eager nod to the woman who she probably respected the most other then her own Mama, earning a reflected nod from the older woman.

"Okay, I suppose that you can go and 'play' with Maki now, but do your best not to be too hard on her, she certainly doesn't have as much energy as you do" Mrs. Nishikino told the girl, who was already jumping from the cot the minute she heard the woman give her confirmation that she could go.

She only realized as Honoka slipped out of the private medical room of the Nishikino mansion that Honoka had forgotten to put her clothes back on after her examination, and didn't have time to call out to remind the ginger before she was long gone in search of her best friend.

Leaning back in her chair with an amused sigh and a shake of her heard, Mrs. Nishikino mumbled to herself about "silly girls" before turning back to her desk and getting to work filing Honoka's latest medical forms and cross-referencing her last results from those taken today in case of any worrying changes.

Thanks to being best friends with Maki for years at this point Honoka had quickly learned about most of the ins and outs of the Nishikino mansion through insistency that she and Maki needed to search every nook and cranny for any interesting secrets.

She was completely oblivious to the fact that she was running around her friend's house in only a white tank top and a pair of black shorts, with her medium-length hair trailing along behind her tied in a high ponytail by Mrs. Nishikino for their appointment, the woman even tying the ribbon she'd used into a cute bow for Honoka.

Since she was busy with Mrs. Nishikino Honoka deduced that there could only be a handful of places Maki would be while her bestest friend wasn't around, and Honoka immediately made a beeline to the very most likely place that she would find her friend. She was rewarded with the familiar sounds of her friend playing the piano as she approached one of the sitting rooms in the Nishikino mansion where she knew a well-tuned piano rested.

Blasting through the doorway without losing any speed and a bright smile upon her face Honoka caught the tail end of Maki's latest composition just before launching her entire body towards her auburn-haired friend in an 'atomic-friendship hug.'

Maki was only given a moment to realize that there was someone else in the room and barely had a chance to turn and see who had entered the room before she found herself bowled over by her over-eager best friend. She somehow managed to cry out Honoka's name in confusion as she saw the ginger come flying at her just before the tiny girl had her limbs wrapped around Maki's body.

Honoka wasted little time nuzzling her cheek against Maki's and purring out her best friend's name affectionately with a bright smile as she hung off the auburn, giving Maki a chance to reorient herself from the very sudden sequence of events that had happened in only a few seconds.

The first thing that Maki noticed was that Honoka had obviously just finished up with her Mama in her annual examination and was bursting with energy as usual. Of course the second thing she noticed caused the girls face to very quickly resemble the color of her hair as Maki became hyper-aware of the state of undress Honoka was in, and tried to find her voice to chastise the ginger.

"Honoka why are you running around the house in your underclothes?" Maki cried out in disbelief to her friend, only making Honoka flinch slightly at the raised volume. Thankfully it caused Honoka to pull away from raining affection upon her best friend, and look down at what she was wearing, allowing Maki to catch her breath.

Blinking her big blue eyes a few times in surprise as she realized what had happened Honoka giggled nervously and bopped herself on the head gently as she replied to Maki "Oops, I must have been too eager and forgot to get dressed after Doctor Nishikino and I finished up" she revealed to her best friend.

Sighing in exasperation of her friend's flights of fancy and rolling her eyes in bemusement, Maki chose to be the responsible person in this friendship and chew Honoka out slightly "Honestly Honoka you shouldn't do things like this, you'll catch a cold if you run around the house in those clothes."

Honoka sat on the piano bench quietly to Maki's surprise as she digested her friend's words, and Maki decided that it was up to her to take action for a change. Climbing from the bench and grabbing onto Honoka's tiny hand, Maki urged her friend to get up and follow her, bringing confusion to Honoka's face.

"Where are we going Maki?" Honoka asked as the auburn led her out of the sitting room, the ginger's familiar bright smile back on her face as she enjoyed the warmth of Maki's hand holding hers as the two young girls started wandering the Nishikino mansion once again.

"I can't let you wander around my house in those clothes Honoka" Maki informed her friend responsibly as she navigated the corridors of the Nishikino mansion with Honoka in tow, occasionally passing a maid who chuckled at the sight of the young lady and her best friend.

It took Honoka a few minutes to realize what direction they were going but brightened up when their destination became obvious "are we going to your room Maki?" Honoka shouted with a beaming smile on her face, always eager to play in Maki's room since it was very different from sitting and listening to Maki play the piano.

"Like I said, I can't just let you wander around my house like that Honoka" Maki repeated in a level voice as she ignored the giggling of the maids that the duo passed. She had grown used to them and their amusement at Honoka's antics, much as she had become mostly desensitized to whatever ideas might pop into Honoka's head.

Pushing open her bedroom door and bringing Honoka inside with her Maki moved towards the bed and released Honoka's hand. Pointing at her bed with a glare that challenged Honoka to refuse her Maki ordered the girl "go sit there and wait for me" before turning and walking towards her closet with assurance that Honoka would do as she was told.

Even though she was a ball of energy Honoka was slightly scared of Maki when she became all commanding like that, and did as she was told quietly since she didn't want to make the taller girl mad at her. It took a little bit of effort for the ginger to get onto the bed since she had to climb up onto it like scaling a mountain, but treated it as another adventure.

Maki disappeared into her closet and left Honoka to sit on the bed twiddling her thumbs with a bright smile, her eyes roving around the room taking in everything around her. Maki surprisingly didn't have a piano in her own room since her parents believed it would stop her from getting any sleep, but there were multiple pictures of the two girls together hung and sitting around the young heiress' room which made Honoka's smile grow wider.

Immediately noticing when Maki returned from the 'cave of wonders' that Honoka believed the auburn's closet was, she noticed that Maki was holding a very pretty sundress in one hand, and a pair of sandals in the other, which made Honoka feel slightly nervous for some reason.

Stopping her march in front of her best friend and holding out her clothes to the ginger, Maki ordered in a voice that Honoka wouldn't dare to argue with "get dressed in these, and then we'll go and get your clothes from Mama's work room."

Maki was a bit surprised to catch a hint of red in Honoka's cheeks, but smiled when Honoka did as she was told and jumped from the bed and reached out to take the offered clothing from Maki. In little time the ginger was once again dressed appropriately to Maki's standards, and a small voice in her mind told her that she'd made a good choice in that particular dress and sandals since they made Honoka look absolutely adorable.

Once more grabbing onto Honoka's hand leading her back out of the room in the direction of Mrs. Nishikino's office, Maki ignored the way that Honoka tried to fuss with the hem of the dress with her free hand uncomfortably, and reminded herself that Honoka wasn't used to dressing so much like a girl.

"Relax Honoka, you look fine in that dress" Maki turned to inform her friend with a small smile that made Honoka's heart jump. The ginger's brain completely stopped working other then putting one foot in front of the other, and they shared a quiet moment wandering the halls of the Nishikino mansion together.

In Maki's mind she thought that the halls of her house didn't feel nearly as lonely anymore when she was with Honoka, and hid a small smile from her friend as she kept her eyes forward on their destination.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

 **Oh Maki, why do I make you so adorably hopeless when it comes to Honoka? And why do I make Honoka so oblivious.**

 **I really enjoy writing Mrs. Nishikino as a mischievous parent whose just trying to help her baby girl open up, and I'm sure that I'll have her in a few more chapters later on trying to play matchmaker for Honoka and Maki, since she can see that these two need a little push in the right direction.**

 **This chapter was planned very early on in this stories lifespan since I really wanted to have Honoka be so oblivious that she wouldn't even remember to get dressed after an appointment with Mama Nishikino in her rush to go and play with Maki and that poor Maki would have to be responsible for her best friend. I briefly considered bringing back that comment about monsters from chapter 2, but since the girls were older now I figured that they would have already explored the mansion for them.**

 **What's left unsaid in this chapter is that the two girls totally had a sleepover after and spent the rest of the day playing together.**

 **I really hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter as much as I did writing it, and a reminder that I love you all. Thank you guys for leaving such nice reviews for this story, and I hope to see you all next time.**


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